BACK HOME FOR NOW
After 4500kms crossing the country in ten days, it sure was nice to get back home and start sorting out gear for the upcoming northern sojourn. While chatting to some mates along the way, they couldn’t believe that I had two sisters, Colleen and Sharryn, that could not only put up with me for that period of time in enclosed spaces, but were also prepared to cook the meals and even buy me beers after each day’s long drive. Truth is I have always known how lucky I am to get on so well with both my sisters and we have had an adventure we will always remember. They very quickly got into the daily routine and although the pace was a little hectic, we managed to see some spectacular sights along the way. The biggest wow factor was definitely taking a four wheel drive track up to the edge of the Nullarbor Cliffs, looking down into the Great Southern Ocean only metres away, with hardly a breath of wind and rolling swells crashing onto the cliffs. So spectacular it was, that even though it was only 11am in the morning and we were on a tight schedule, I quickly made the decision that we would stay for the afternoon and camp the night, as this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. With no others campers around, we explored the coast, spotted two whales well out of season, spread our parents ashes, flew a kite, ate like kings, drank fine red wine and then danced to AC/DC around a small fire. For me, another joy of travelling the outback is in finding free camp spots that are safe, off the main highways and not so public. Sometimes this can be a bit tricky when your camper is white and 4.1metres high. I will rarely camp up in designated rest areas, because unfortunately some people are just too messy with how they dispose of their waste. We take all our rubbish with us and know the importance of digging a deep hole when required. Anyway, armed with outback road maps, camping maps, state maps and even geographical maps, from about 3pm each arvo we would engage in a military operation to interrogate tracks heading off the main roads to find a suitably camouflaged location, conscious of never entering private land. So for the nine nights we spent on the road, we only stayed in a caravan park by necessity one night due to a dust storm and were able to free camp for the other eight. Of course this was only possible because the new truck camper has gas, lithium batteries, solar panels and a 2500watt inverter. No generator required, which is special when you want to watch a night sky without that annoying motor grinding away in the background.
The final highlight of the trip was our stopover in Esperance, where the challenge was to find an isolated beach, with that powdery fine white sand that Esperance is so famous for. Sure enough, after a ten km drive, that is exactly what we found, so we swam in the pristine aqua ocean, washed away the Nullarbor dust and headed for home. Where else in the world could you have done all this eh?
